As the US economic data presents a combination of "prices rising more than expected + labor market cooling more than expected," the US stock market, which just hit a new high, has stopped in its tracks, curiously watching the statements of Federal Reserve officials.
The market did not view this set of data as a disaster. As of Thursday's close, the S&P 500 index fell by 0.21%, reporting 5,780.05 points; the Nasdaq index fell by 0.05%, reporting 18,282.05 points; the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.14%, reporting 42,454.12 points.
Just as shown in the minutes of yesterday's September meeting, the twists and turns of economic data are also causing divisions among Federal Reserve policymakers. Regarding Thursday's data, New York Fed Chairman Williams, Chicago Fed Chairman Goolsbee, and Richmond Federal Chairman Barkin all said "it's not a big deal," which can support continued gradual rate cuts. However, Atlanta Fed Chairman Bostic put "only one rate cut in the last two meetings of the year" on the table.
Morgan Stanley's E*Trade analyst Chris Larkin interpreted that a slightly higher-than-expected CPI reading does not mean a new round of inflation is erupting, but it is accompanied by a surge in weekly unemployment benefit claims, which may increase short-term market uncertainty. These data are not good - but this does not mean they have overturned the overall outlook for robust economic growth and moderate inflation.
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Before the market opens on Friday, JPMorgan Chase will release its third-quarter report, which also marks the start of a new round of US stock earnings season. Goldman Sachs currently believes that this US stock earnings season will drive the market to a "relief rally." Goldman Sachs believes that spending on artificial intelligence, interest rate paths, and high attention to the US election have made the VIX index higher than its long-term average, and it is very likely also a factor that hinders investors from increasing their stock allocation.While the US stock market is calm, Chinese assets have also seen a halt in their decline and are stabilizing. The NASDAQ Golden Dragon China Index closed up by 0.3% on Thursday, stopping a sharp drop of 8% over the previous two days. Considering that the Hong Kong stock market is closed on Fridays, at least there is no need to worry about the impact of the "dragging" of the external market when the A-shares open.
Performance of Popular Stocks
US tech giants saw mixed performances, with Apple down by 0.22%, Microsoft down by 0.39%, Amazon up by 0.8%, META down by 1.13%, Google-A up by 0.14%, Tesla down by 0.95%, Nvidia up by 1.63%, and Intel down by 1.02%.
Chinese concept stocks continued to stabilize and rebound. As of the close, Alibaba was up by 1.29%, Baidu was up by 0.01%, Pinduoduo was up by 0.08%, JD.com was up by 0.89%, NetEase was down by 1.12%, Qifutek was up by 2.95%, Zai Lab was up by 2.80%, Miniso was up by 2.32%, Ctrip was up by 2.29%, Weibo was up by 1.90%, NIO was down by 0.79%, Li Auto was down by 3.76%, and XPeng was up by 0.96%.
Other News【AMD Launches NVIDIA Rival AI Chip, Stock Price Plummets】
At the product launch event held on Thursday, AMD unveiled a series of new products, including the MI325X AI accelerator and the fifth-generation EPYC "Turing" series server CPUs. The company also announced that it will release the next-generation MI355X chip with a new architecture next year. However, as the event unfolded, AMD's stock price plummeted, closing down by 4%.
【TD Bank Agrees to Pay $3 Billion to Settle Anti-Money Laundering Investigation】
Toronto-Dominion Bank closed down 5.3% on Thursday. The company announced that it has reached an agreement with the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, and the Department of Justice, among other agencies, to settle the U.S. law enforcement investigation into the bank's anti-money laundering practices for a combined fee of $3.09 billion, and has agreed to implement reforms.
【Morgan Stanley: The Increase in Blackwell GPU Production Seems "Quite Strong"】Morgan Stanley analyst Joseph Moore released a report after meeting with Nvidia executives, including CEO Jensen Huang, stating that the AI chip giant is preparing to launch its Blackwell series of GPUs, with production ramp-up appearing to be "quite strong." Following the shipment delays that caused a stir this past summer, Moore reiterated his confidence that Nvidia will achieve "billions of dollars in Blackwell revenue" in the January quarter of next year.
Nvidia also assured him that there are no concerns regarding the supply of HBM3e, and the company is "very confident" about bringing Samsung on board as a third supplier.
**Weight Loss Platform Offers "Budget GLP-1 Drug" as Stock Soars, Analyst Warns of Risks**
U.S. weight loss platform WW International saw its stock price soar after offering a "compound version of semaglutide" on Tuesday. Including a 22.50% increase on Thursday, the stock has nearly doubled in value this week. The company's official website states that the compound weight loss drug costs $129 for the first month and $189 per month thereafter. In contrast, the cost of Wegovy for one month is $1349.
Barclays analyst Stephanie Davis warned on Thursday that the company's stock price does not reflect the risks associated with this business. Research published by Novo Nordisk indicates that the compound version of semaglutide contains various impurities and also shows a more aggressive stance towards compound drug manufacturers. Limited regulatory resources are also more likely to focus on large platforms like WW International. Moreover, this business model is only effective as long as branded weight loss drugs remain in short supply.